Devious as a Fox
by YukiwaFuru
Summary: AU. 5 year old Naruto asks Sandaime who his parents are.Sandaime answers.Everything changes.How far will Naruto go to defeat Madara and become Rokudaime?How far will Sasuke go to avenge his clan and save his brother?Slight Smart-Naruto.Not Strong-Naruto. Discontinued.
1. Sandaime shows his cards to Fugaku?

Umm, new story. What can I say, I was inspired. I also suspect this story has more potential than my others. But just to let you all know I'm not dead and I'm not abandoning any of my stories, I'm just stuck. So this story will help. I hope. Umm, there may be some incidental humor in this story, so I labeled it Adventure/Humor. Well, I at least think Fugaku is funny, but that's just me. This is mostly a talk chapter and it's sappy. More action to come.

Declaimed.

"Jiji?" Naruto said with a hint of hesitation in his voice.

The Sandaime looked up from his report curiously, wondering at the boy's tone of voice. Not too long ago Naruto had moved into an apartment of his own in preparation for joining the academy. Now that he was no longer under the harsh discipline of the orphanage it seemed that he'd started to open up a bit, having been unusually quiet before. Unfortunately for the village, that freedom was manifesting itself in the form of pranks on anyone who treated him badly. After only two weeks, this was the third time Naruto had landed himself in the Hokage's office for disturbing the village with his mischief. For a five year old, Naruto had a wicked sense of humor. This last prank for example; the boy had crept into the orphanage and diluted the shampoo of his least favorite caretakers with hydrogen peroxide. The matron in particular seemed to have gotten a strong dose as some of her hair had fallen out as a result. Hiruzen wondered if enrolling Naruto in the academy with the children who didn't have anyone to give them a basic education was really a good idea, but without the home training that most children from ninja clans received, he'd be woefully unprepared. With a small sigh, Hiruzen refocused on the boy that he'd already dismissed.

"What is it, Naruto?" Hiruzen asked, making sure to speak patiently. The boy wouldn't directly meet his eyes and the Sandaime sat up a bit straighter, honed instincts making him rethinking the importance of this conversation.

"You know you can ask me anything, Naruto." the old man spoke kindly, trying to put the boy as ease. Naruto looked up to meet his eyes a bit more confidently this time and smiled a little.

"I know, Jiji. But whenever I asked about my parents before I was told someone like me doesn't have any. Is that true?" The boy bit his lip and looked more uncertain than ever. Maybe he shouldn't have lectured Naruto so much for pranking the orphanage caretakers. He had half a mind to give them a piece of his, as well.

Hiruzen looked at the boy standing on the other side of his desk sadly. He knew this day would come eventually. What he wasn't sure of was how much he could tell the boy. He didn't want to burden him, but looking at him now he was beginning to realize that the boy was suffering even more from not knowing.

With an even heavier sigh, Hiruzen got up from his desk and stepped over to one of the windows that overlooked the village. He turned slightly to motion Naruto to join him before focusing his attention on the stone head of Yondaime.

Hiruzen sighed before speaking, "The greatest comfort to many ninja is their family. No matter how horrible a ninja's career, if they have a loving family they can bear it. That's why losing our family is the greatest fear of many ninja, and the most painful thing a ninja could be asked to do is sacrifice their family for their village. And yet, for a parent to sacrifice themselves for their child is natural."

Hiruzen knelt, grasping Naruto by the shoulders and looking into his eyes before continuing, "Your parents sacrificed their lives so that you could live. They loved you very much."

By this point Naruto was opening crying, a first for the child that had learned to hide his feelings from those who had no sympathy for them.

Naruto spoke around the lump in his throat, "But who were they, Jiji!"

Hiruzen sighed again, knowing the next part would be harder, "Your parents sacrificed themselves to save you but in doing so they also saved this village. They were the Yondaime Hokage, Namikaze Minato and his lover Uzumaki Kushina. They died in order to defeat the Kyuubi.""

The boy stopped crying abruptly to stare. The Sandaime could almost see the gears turning in his head.

Naruto's eyes were wide as saucers as he gaped, but he soon recovered and spoke, "The Kyuubi attacked the day I was born, but you're saying my mom helped defeat it? How?"

The boy was reeling from the information, but finding out who his parents were left him with even more questions and thinking over his life, he was starting to wonder what it was that the Hokage wasn't telling him.

Hiruzen cursed internally, he'd been hoping that the boy might not ask for more information, but Naruto's experiences had made him far less naive than the average child his age. Knowing this conversation just got a lot more complicated, the Hokage ease himself into a cross-legged sitting position to take the weight off his knees, motioning for the boy to do the same. Hiruzen knew he had to phrase things delicately now while still being honest. If Naruto were to discover later that his Jiji had been dishonest with him it would be worse than if he'd never said anything at all. Hmm, maybe a story was in order.

Hiruzen produced his pipe from somewhere in his robes along with a tin of tobacco and filled it before lighting the pipe with a small, seal-less katon jutsu. He took a puff before answering the boy,

"Before we get to that, Naruto, you need to understand your mother's heritage, which is closely tied to the founding of this village. It's well known that the Senju and the Uchiha were the main founding clans of Konoha. What isn't as well known is that one of the main reasons the Senju were able to get the Uchiha to join them was because of their alliance through marriage with the Uzumaki clan. The Uzumaki clan had their own village called Uzioshiogakure in Uzu no Kuni, so they didn't join Konoha when it was founded, but even during the warring clans period, the first Great Shinobi war, The Uzumaki maintained close ties with the Senju since both clans had a common ancestor.

As the violence of the first Great Shinobi war grew the Uzumaki and Senju looked to each other for support and that lead to the marriage of Senju Hashirama, the Shodai Hokage, and Uzumaki Mito, the daughter of the Uzumaki clan head. With a formal alliance between them, the Uchiha had to worry about the possibility of facing the Uzumaki on the battlefield as well as the Senju. But instead of attacking, the Shodai suggested an alliance with the Uchiha and after a great deal of arguing which involved both the fire Daimyo and the Uzumaki clan head, the Uchiha and the Senju swore their loyalty to the Daimyo in exchange for land and started approaching other clans to join the alliance and found Konoha."

Through all this Naruto was listening raptly. He may have usually had a short attention span, but this was his clan's history and he desperately wanted to know about them. He wanted to interrupt and find out what all this had to do with his mother's death, but the serious look on the Hokage's face stopped him.

Hiruzen paused to take a puff from his pipe before continuing, "Eventually Senju Hashirama was chosen to become the Shodai, but there was one man who was deeply dissatisfied with the decision. Uchiha Madara, the Uchiha clan head, had wanted the position himself and nearly broke the alliance trying to get it. His clan, though, had had enough of war and refused to follow him, causing Madara to abandon Konoha. Now, the reason why the Shodai was considered so powerful was because of his unique Kekkei Genkai, Mokuton, which allowed him to use natural energy to control chakra monsters called the Bijuu. There are nine Bijuu and their creation is a story for another time, but by controlling the Bijuu, Hashirama was able to trade them to the other four ninja villages that were also forming during this time and end the first Great Shinobi war. This is the reason he was elected Shodai. But there was one Bijuu that even the Shodai hadn't confronted and that was the Kyuubi, the greatest of the nine.

Madara, however possessed an advanced form of the Sharingan, the Mangekyo Sharingan, which also allowed him to control the Bijuu, if not to the same extent as Hashirama. After he left Konoha, Madara found the Kyuubi and bent it to his will, bringing it with him to destroy Konoha. Hashirama and his wife Mito were the ones to confront him at the Valley of the End. Hashirama gained control over the Kyuubi and Mito sealed it within herself, becoming the first Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi. The word Jinchuuriki means The power of human sacrifice because often it costs a human life to seal a bijuu into another. But because of her strong chakra and sealing abilities, which the Uzumaki were known for along with their longevity, Mito managed to perform the sealing herself. Hashirama then defeated Madara, and the two of them returned as the saviors of Konoha. But time passed and Mito grew old. She survived her husband, but there was concern over what would happen when she died. The Kyuubi would be released and in order to prevent that, a new Jinchuuriki was sought. However, not just anyone would be able to hold back the most powerful of the Bijuu. The Uzumaki clan once again responded, sending a girl that even for the Uzumaki clan, was born with exceptionally strong chakra, chakra powerful enough to restrain the nine-tails. That girl became the second Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi, Uzumaki Kushina." Hiruzen stopped and waited for Naruto's reaction.

Naruto had been following along with the story well enough despite its complexity, but froze when he heard the last part. He was beyond shocked at this point. His mother had had to experience something like that? It made him even more worried to discover what had gone so wrong to end in the Kyuubi attack. In addition, he was starting to get a sick feeling of dread in his stomach thinking of his role in all this.

"My mother was the second Jinchuuriki of the Kyuubi?" Naruto almost shouted, near his wits end, "What happened, then. How did the Kyuubi escape?"

Hiruzen set his pipe aside, not having the heart to continue smoking at this point. He sighed, sending Naruto a sad look. "Sadly, that is something that only your mother and father know the answer to, but I have always suspected that their was some sort of foul play involved. But before I tell you about the Kyuubi attack, I would like to tell you more about your parents' lives. During the Second Great Shinobi war, after your mother came to Konoha, Uzioshiogakure was destroyed by Kumo, who coveted their sealing techniques to help them gain control of their own Bijuu. Their were no survivors of the Uzumaki clan in Uzu no Kuni and your mother became the last. During this time also, your mother was kidnapped by Kumo because of her Jinchuuriki status. We searched frantically for her, but it was your father who found her and rescued her. Apparently she left a trail with her red hair and your father was the only one to notice it. After the rescue, they fell in love and your mother taught your father the Uzumaki's sealing style, which led to your father inventing two of the arguably most powerful sealing techniques to ever exist. In addition to the Rasengan, which he also invented, these sealing jutsu led to your father being the main force behind our victory in the third Great Shinobi war and his election as Yondaime Hokage.

The council had voted to restrict your mother to Konoha after her kidnapping to prevent it from happening again, but despite the restrictions on her, she seemed very happy. She was the main force behind your father becoming Hokage and she was well-loved in the village for her charming (if a touch extreme) personality. She had wanted to become the first female Hokage as a child, but she loved Minato and was so proud of him that she swore to be his right-hand man instead. Hiruzen chuckled a little at this. As for him, he did it all for her sake and they were very happy when she got pregnant with you. Your father had gained a lot of enemies from the war with Iwa and so their relationship and your conception was kept secret from all but a few of their most trusted friends. That is also why the fact that your Minato's child has been kept secret and you've been given your mother's name. If Iwa were to find out that you are the Yondaime's son, they would send assassins after you and it could possibly lead to another war. So you need to keep all of this a secret, do you understand?"

Hiruzen sent Naruto a stern look which softened when Naruto nodded. The boy had started crying again while learning about his parents and the Sandaime gently pulled the boy into his lap and hugged him. Naruto clung to his robes and sobbed and Hiruzen rubbed his back while he reconsidered telling the child the rest of the story. Naruto, we don't need to talk about the Kyuubi attack today if you don't want to. What happened that day was a true tragedy and I don't want you to be burdened with that knowledge until you're ready for it. I was very fond of Kushina and Minato and me and my wife Biwako thought of them as our own children, so you're like a grandson to me. I want you to be happy and enjoy your childhood as much as possible." The old Hokage's eyes had gotten curiously misty as he held the child and he knew he was not looking forward to finishing this talk. Naruto had stilled at his last words and stopped crying once again. The boy hugged him tighter for a moment before pulling back and looking at him with a solemn and determined expression. In that moment, the Hokage was struck by how much Naruto looked like his parents and he couldn't help smiling a little.

When Naruto spoke it was with the conviction of a child that had yet to discover that there are things one is better off not knowing. "I need to know the truth, Jiji, I need to know what happened to them."

Hiruzen sighed and nodded once, knowing that Naruto was too stubborn to back down now. When he spoke, it was with a voice full of regret and sadness, "For a female Jinchuuriki, the most dangerous moment is childbirth. Kushina's chakra was weakened by labor and her seal became unstable because of the fluctuations. It was the same for Mito. My wife Biwako saw your mother through labor while your father stabilized the seal. But someone attacked them. Later I discovered that the ANBU guards that I had posted were all killed where they stood unable to sound an alert to those within. If they'd been able to, your father would have gotten your mother and you to safety with his Hiraishin. It must have happened right after your birth while your father was stabilizing the seal. The attackers, whoever they were, managed to kill my wife and the ANBU within the cabin before your father could respond and somehow got your mother away from him. They didn't manage to hurt you, but whoever attacked your parents must have been very powerful and knowledgeable, because they extracted the Kyuubi from your mother before your father could take her back and released the Kyuubi upon Konoha. Your father got you and your mother to safety, it seems that she managed to survive the extraction, usually extracting a Bijuu would kill the host, but your mother was very strong. Still, she was very weak by that point.

Minato arrived in Konoha in time to draw the Kyuubi's attention to him on top of the monument and neutralize an attack that would have destroyed the village, but something happened. He was probably forced to fight whoever released the Kyuubi because he left and didn't return for awhile. He must have won his fight because he returned and summoned the toad boss on top of the Kyuubi. It was quite a sight, but we were suffering heavy casualties by that point. Minato then teleported the Kyuubi out of the village to deal with it himself. I had been leading the attack on the Kyuubi in your father's absence and went after him to help him deal with the Kyuubi. But I arrived too late. I was just in time to see your father use the Shiki Fuin to seal half the Kyuubi's chakra. It was the second of the two powerful sealing jutsu that your father had invented. The jutsu is designed to summon the Shinigami and strike a deal, in exchange for sealing an opponent, the Shinigami receives the user's soul.

The other half, your parents sealed into you. The Kyuubi tried to kill you, but they protected you with their own bodies. They'd argued, your mom didn't want you to become a Jinchuuriki like her cause she knew you would suffer, but your dad said that you would need it and he couldn't seal anymore of the Kyuubi's chakra. He was worried for the future, it seems he knew of some threat that we didn't and believed that you would be able to master the Kyuubi and use it to protect yourself and the village. Minato was never the type to act without good reason, so the threat he spoke of must have been grave indeed. He wouldn't have gone so far as to seal the Kyuubi into his own son otherwise. He believed you would be able to do what he couldn't and he wanted to seal some of his and your mother's chakra inside you as well, so you would be able to meet them someday. I wrote down their last words to you before they sealed the Kyuubi and died, I'll give it to you now."

Hiruzen gently placed the boy on the floor and opened a small safe behind the Yondaime's picture, pulling out a scroll and a picture and giving them to Naruto. The boy hadn't looked up since finding out he was the Kyuubi's Jinchuuriki. He hadn't even seemed that surprised, just sat quietly and held out his hand to accept the scroll and the picture. He read it and stared at the words and then at the picture of his parents together, him mom's hand on her big belly, while his dad stood behind her smiling. He clutched the two items and broke down crying. The Sandaime knelt again and held him while he wept. He had parents and they loved him! Him mom was beautiful and strong and his dad was smart and brave. He couldn't believe he had such amazing parents and even though it might take years, he would even get to meet them someday! It hurt, but he was happy.

He had the Kyuubi inside him, but he also had his parents chakra inside him. He wanted to make them proud, so they'd smile when he met them. He was scared of the Kyuubi, but his parents had faced it, his mom had been a Jinchuuriki too, but Jiji said she had been happy, so he'd manage too. He didn't feel as lonely anymore. Knowing they loved him, that his dad believed in him and his mom worried about what kind of life he was living made it hurt less. He felt like he finally had something to live for. He'd take his mom's words to heart, he'd be himself and have big dreams and try to make a few good friends. He'd even eat his vegetables. He'd study hard and practice his ninjutsu and become a strong shinobi like his dad. His mom didn't give up and neither would he!

He stopped crying finally and smiled a bit at the Sandaime's worried expression. "It's alright, Jiji. It's sad, like you said, but they seem like really great people, I bet they would've been the best parents ever. I'm not gonna let them down! I'm gonna grow up to be as awesome as they were!" Naruto grinned bravely through his tears.

Hiruzen smiled, "They're already proud of you, my boy. Besides, if I recall correctly, your mother was quite the prankster, too. She was very loud like you and constantly ended her sentences with -ttebane! But she was loved in this village for her vibrant personality and positive attitude and feared for her temper. Your father on the other hand was quiet but had a work ethic unlike anything I've ever seen, he was a kind man who protected his comrades no matter what. Anyway, if you want to talk about any of this, you're always welcome in my office, Naruto."

Naruto looked spaced out for a moment before asking somberly, "Jiji, the reason people hate me is because of the Kyuubi, isn't it?"

Hiruzen sighed and thought quickly, "Yes, a lot of lives were lost that night and people are still grieving. They're looking for someone to blame and since we still don't know who was behind the attack, they blame you and to a lesser extent the Uchiha clan. When they see you they're reminded of their pain and fear and how helpless they were that night. When people are hurt, they often lash out at others seeking to cause others the same pain they feel. And those people do the same thing to other people, until everyone is suffering. The hatred in a person's eyes is eventually reflected by everyone they look at until they are surrounded by hatred and pain. But love is more powerful than hate and a person with love in their heart can change the hearts of others to reflect their own as long as they don't give up. That's why I believe that if you don't give up then one day the villagers will see you for the hero you are instead of the demon inside of you."

Naruto hung on every word the old man said. He didn't understand it well, but his Jiji was the wisest and nicest person he knew, so he must be right. He knew what it was like to be scared and lonely too. He looked at the picture of his parents. If he found the person who hurt them, he'd hate them too. Just like the villagers hate him. He could understand that. But Jiji said that love was stronger than hate and he wanted to make his parents proud more than find the person who killed them. His dad wanted him to protect the village and his mom wanted him to live a good life and follow his dreams. Hmm, he'd never thought about dreams before...unless they were the things he had when he fell asleep

Naruto thought over what the old man said and wondered, "Uchiha clan? Why would the villagers blame the Uchiha? Hiruzen sighed wearily, something he'd done far too many times today, and spoke quietly, I mentioned before that the only one to control the Kyuubi besides the Shodai was Uchiha Madara. Because that fact is well-known, many people believe that the one responsible for the Kyuubi attack is a member of the Uchiha clan. There are even those that believe the entire clan planned the attack to get control of Konoha, even though the Uchiha suffered heavy casualties during the attack. I myself don't believe for a second that Fugaku, the Uchiha clan head, would betray your father. He respected him greatly and believed that he was the only suitable choice for the position of Yondaime. Besides that, Fugaku's wife Mikoto was your mother's best friend. They were devastated when they found out your parents had both died. Naruto tilted his head to the side a bit before asking, Why didn't they ever talk to me, then?"

Hiruzen nodded before answering, "You're right, they would have, but I never confirmed your identity to the council. I claimed you were an orphan of unknown parentage; the fewer people that know a secret, the safer it is. Only a few people knew that Kushina and Minato were together and the only one with both the right to know who you are and the clearance for that information was Jiraiya, your father's sensei. Mikoto never had S-rank clearance, even when she was in ANBU. Since then the only other people I've told are you and Kakashi, Minato's last remaining student. He recently gained high enough clearance and since he was like a son to Minato, I felt he deserved to know. Although, even though I say those are the only people I've told, I'm sure there are some others who have guessed, but that's a separate issue."

Naruto's eyes were wide, "Then can I talk to this Kakashi guy? And you said others had probably guessed, so that means Fugaku and Mikoto probably know too, right? I mean, the police force never gave me as much trouble as the civilians unless I was pranking, so maybe they were ordered not to?"

Hiruzen eyed the boy's eager expression and cursed inwardly. He hated to have to disappoint the boy when he had such a hopeful and slightly desperate look on his face. Naruto had had an awful experience at the orphanage and he deserved a couple people that he could trust to help look out for him. Hell, Sarutobi had had to teach the boy to read and write himself even with his duties as Hokage, but he wouldn't have as much time in the future. His eldest son had died on a mission a year and a half ago and his son's wife had died in childbirth. He'd hired a retired kunoichi to look after his grandson Konohamaru, but the boy had just turned one and would soon need more of his attention. The Hokage looked at Naruto speculatively.

Hiruzen smiled at the boy before answering, "I know you want to get to know the people your parents were close to Naruto, but the situation is delicate. Too much open interaction between you and them would be dangerous for you because of those who know of the relationship they had with your father. In addition to that, the Uchiha clan is in a politically difficult position right now. A lot of people and even some of the other clans suspect them of being involved with the Kyuubi attack and the civilian populace is against them despite them having my support. There have even been some claims that they have used you to blackmail me into supporting them. The situation is already a tense one and if you're seen with them, it'll become even worse."

Hiruzen winced internally at the look of dejection on Naruto's face and hurried to add, "However, we are ninja and a ninja's primary tool is deception, after all. Naruto grinned in anticipation as the Hokage continued, I will call Kakashi in to meet you later, he asked to be assigned to your ANBU detail every once in awhile and I'll give him permission to speak to you when you're alone. As for the Uchiha, I've got an idea that might allow you to help their relations with the village as well as meet with Fugaku and Mikoto every once in awhile.

If you start pranking the Uchiha, it will perhaps buy them some sympathy with the general population as well as disabuse people of the notion that you might somehow by working with them. As punishment, I can have you do chores for the people you prank and if they refuse to oversee your punishment themselves, it will be the Uchiha clan head's job to do so. Well, it might take some time, but I'm sure you can make punishing you enough of a pain to make no one else want to do it. And then you'll have an excuse to help out around the Uchiha main house every once in awhile, especially if you start pranking the man who punishes you most often. I will, of course, send a discreet message to Fugaku telling him about you and asking what he and Mikoto think of this plan. Once I get a response I'll let you know that you can start. Do you think you'll be able to pull this off without raising suspicions, Naruto?"

By the time he finished speaking, Naruto was grinning with delight and practically bouncing where he sat. Immediately the boy answered, "You bet, Jiji! They wont know what hit them. I'm not good enough at being sneaky to get into the compound yet, but if I target the patrols and raise hell when they take me in, everyone will know and no one will want to deal with me. But I'm gonna need ninja supplies and information on trap making."

Hiruzen thought for a second before walking to his desk and scribbling quick notes on two pieces of paper. After giving them to Naruto, he explained, "Give the first to Higurashi Aoi, the owner of Higurashi Ninja Supplies. There you can purchase any of the basic ninja supplies and training equipment. The more advanced equipment you'll need permission from me to purchase. Your purchases will be paid through my account, as this is a mission of sorts. Also, a word of caution; even though you're a civilian, due to your status as a Jinchuuriki you must be very careful to not injure anyone seriously, if you did the council might try to have you locked up. Specifically, you must not injure any civilians and you are to use explosive tags only as a distraction in an area where there are no civilians.

Although, I imagine it'll take you awhile to learn to channel chakra and set them off. Also, read the instructions on how to use each item carefully, I don't want you to blow yourself up or injure yourself. I am putting a considerable amount of trust in you to be responsible with these privileges, don't make me regret it, Naruto. As for the second note, it's for the head librarian, Yura-san. Give it to her and she will give you access to the section of the library reserved for academy students. It should have everything you need to get started. Now, have you noticed that you heal faster than other kids? And that you have more energy?"

Naruto looked thoughtful for a moment before nodding, "Now that you mention it, yah. Is that because of the Kyuubi?"

Hiruzen nodded, "It is. A little bit of it's chakra is constantly mixed with yours by the seal on your stomach."

Naruto quickly pulled his shirt up to look at his stomach, and then looked at the Hokage quizzically, "I can't see it, Jiji! Why?"

Hiruzen nodded, "It will only appear when you mold chakra. Don't worry, though, that just means it's working. Your seal is strong, most likely stronger than any other used to seal a bijuu, and while it may weaken with age, it can be strengthened again when the time comes, so you don't have to worry about the fox."

Naruto nodded at this, looking relieved. "Since you heal quickly I suggest you use training weights once you work out an exercise routine. Usually I wouldn't allow a child your age to use such a method because of the risk of injury, but since you heal quickly it should be ok as long you don't go overboard.

I also suggest you study stealth methods and learn stealth techniques once you can use your chakra. A lot of them are e-rank and just require a lot of concentration to work. Concealing your chakra will be difficult since you have a lot of it, but if you want to catch members of the police force by surprise, you'll have to learn to do that too. You might want to keep in mind that it's easier to control and conserve your chakra when you've used a lot of it already. My final piece of advice to you is to remember that the key components of an ambush are planning, stealth and speed. If you have any questions that Yura-san can't answer, feel free to ask me. Did you understand all that?"

Naruto looked unsure, but nodded anyway.

Hiruzen chuckled, "Good, but if you need a reminder you can always ask me next time we're alone. Now, I'm going to keep you out of the academy until you're seven so you can enroll with the other children and have time to complete this...mission." Naruto opened his mouth to object but stopped when he heard the word mission. The Sandaime smiled, "I'll give you the curriculum and I expect you to use the references at the library to follow along with the academy students in your free time. It'll be a lot of work, but you'll need that knowledge for when you join the academy." Naruto nodded, even though he had a sour expression on his face at the idea of so much studying. He'd spent the last year learning to read and write so he could join the academy and didn't look forward to doing more work like that. But he wanted to make his parents proud so he'd do his best anyway.

The Sandaime shook his head in amusement at the boy's expression, "Do your best, Naruto. If you can manage to pull this off and keep it up at least until you become an academy student, then I'll put it on your record as a completed b-rank mission when you become a genin." Naruto whooped and jumped forward to hug the Hokage again. As he hugged the boy back, chuckling, Sarutobi looked out the window and noticed how late it was. Sighing, he said, "It's been a long day and I haven't gotten much paperwork done. Oh well, what do you say we go get some ramen and then I'll take you back to your apartment?"

Naruto whooped again and ran out of the office before Hiruzen could even get up. Chuckling at the boy's enthusiasm, the old Hokage got up and followed him as a leisurely pace.

/Ichiraku/

Sometime during the next hour Naruto had fallen asleep in his seat, lulled by the comfort of a full stomach and the warm breeze of a summer evening. He's been regaling the Hokage with a story of one of his more spontaneous pranks, where a tomato vender had refused to sell to the boy, saying he didn't sell to inhuman brats like him. Naruto had responded by giving the man a taste of his own product when a particularly ripe tomato splattered on his face. Of course, the cheerful boy left out the fact that he'd nearly been mobbed afterward save for his ANBU guard, instead speaking of the man's stunned expression with tomato bits dribbling down his chin.

Sarutobi had smiled though the story and chuckled at Naruto's description, but inwardly he thought that in his less tolerant youth, he would have punched the man himself. As it was, technically no crime had been committed, and punishing civilian crime was the job of the police force anyway so his hands were tied. After paying for the four bowls of ramen the boy had devoured, he scooped the child up and proceeded to carry him home.

As he put the boy to bed, he couldn't help but notice the drool on his robes and smothered a chuckle. Usually he might have been annoyed, but Naruto had had a very hard day and taken it much better than he had expected. The least he could do was tolerate some drool. He tucked the child in and watched him sleep for a moment before turning off the light and silently leaving the apartment. Naruto's life was much too complicated for a child his age, but Hiruzen couldn't shake the feeling that the boy would one day surpass even his expectations.

/Hokage's Office/

After spending a half an hour or so writing on a scroll, Sarutobi sealed it with a seal keyed to Fugaku's chakra signature. As Hokage he needed to be able to send secure missives to any of the key members of his ninja force in case of emergency. So he kept a couple of keyed seals for every council member, ANBU squad leader, elite jounin as well as for the head of each specialized department in the ninja corps, including the Academy. It seemed like an excessive system, but it had proved its weight in gold more than once and was now coming in handy yet again.

After sealing the scroll, he summoned the stealthiest of the monkeys, a small brown monkey called Taro. Taro was good enough to sneak by even a lot of elite jounin, so he'd have no problem delivering the scroll to Fugaku. After giving Taro instructions and watching him slip past the ANBU outside his office, the Hokage set himself to complete paperwork and await a response.

/Uchiha main house/

Fugaku awoke immediately, like most experienced ninja do, not fluttering his eyelids and keeping his breathing relaxed and steady. After a moment he heard scratching on the window and quickly opened his eyes to see what caused it. A small monkey was lightly scraping its nail on the window, quiet enough not to wake anyone outside the room. Fugaku slipped soundlessly from his bed without disturbing his wife, proving just how tired she'd become lately. Between raising their children, staying in fighting trim and managing the clan's affairs while he was at the police headquarters each day, she'd had her hands full. Especially with the recent unrest within the clan.

His problems, on the other hand, stemmed more from the villagers and their increasing lack of respect for Konoha's police force. But Fugaku shoved his problems from his mind as he quickly pulled on his dark brown robe over his boxers. He knew if the Hokage was sending a message via his summons then the matter had to be sensitive, something even the rest of the council shouldn't be privy to. He slid the window open as the monkey turned around to have the scroll taken from its back. To his surprise the summons didn't dispel after being relieved of its burden. So the Hokage required a prompt response. Very well. He motioned for the monkey to follow him as he closed the door behind it and quietly went to his office. He sat at his desk and pushed some of his chakra into the scroll's seal, unlocking it. He ignored the curious monkey as it investigated the room, knowing it would find nothing of concern, and began to read.

The first thing Sarutobi did in his letter was confirm Uzumaki Naruto as Minato and Kushina's child. Well, that was no surprise, the old goat had written off the boy's name as a tribute to the Jinchuuriki that came before him, when anyone who had eyes and knew of Minato and Kushina's relationship would know immediately that he was their child. Regardless, the letter gave him permission to tell his wife that Kushina's child had survived, a matter he had had to lie to her about previously. Interesting. But why now? He kept reading...ah. What! Hiruzen had told the boy both about his parents and then about the Kyuubi earlier tonight! Was the man slipping in his old age? Telling a five year old child that he has a demon sealed inside him is something that is just not done. Even among the Uchiha, who start training their children as soon as they can walk.

Hmm...oh, so that was why. Someone told the boy he had no parents? The stupidity of civilians would never cease to amaze him. But still...well, it made sense not to leave the boy thinking that or alienate him by lying, but telling him everything was clearly reckless and unnecessary. Ah, for some reason he believed the boy would not only be able to handle the knowledge of who his parents were, but thrive because of it. And apparently the boy was smart enough to figure out that his treatment was related to the Kyuubi after finding out his mother was the Jinchuuriki. Well, even a five year old would guess that after being told that and called monster all the time. Ah, well, it would be impossible to lie by that point without risking alienating the child. It seems it couldn't be helped, even if it could, the senile old bastard.

Moving on. The boy had been told about them and wanted to meet people who were close to his parents? Understandable, but impossible. Hmm, what's this nonsense about pranks?...oh god no. God. No. As if he didn't have enough to deal with already. And the last thing he needed was the clan to become the village laughing stock right now. Would help convince people that they weren't responsible for the attack since they couldn't even control the Jinchuuriki? Maybe. Would win them sympathy and respect as those who took the brunt of the brat's mischief? Unlikely. Would provide a conversation piece between the villagers and the police force, easing the tension through common annoyance? Perhaps a little. Help the boy be seen as more of a troublemaker with ninja potential than a threat? Possible. Do it for Minato and his legacy. Well, fuck. That clever old monkey. Hmph, he would like to meet the brat. He sounded a mix between Minato and Kushina, which was bound to be amusing if extremely obnoxious. Perhaps a distraction would ease the tension a bit. It wouldn't get rid of it, but it would buy some time, maybe. Besides, it couldn't get any worse, right?

Right. It could always get worse. The man in his late thirties sighed, rubbing his forehead. Well, he'd give this plan of the Hokage's a try. It wasn't likely to do more than delay the inevitable, but having a little more time wouldn't hurt things. Besides, he really did owe it to Minato, after all the man had saved his life on more than one occasion. Maybe he could see if the boy had any of his father's brilliance and give him a few pointers. Itachi was too old to need his advice and Sasuke lacked the drive and talent... and if the boy did take after his father in more than looks his trust and gratitude might come in handy one day. Fugaku scoffed, dismissing the unlikelihood for what it was, just another of the Sandaime's pipe-dreams. Minato was the only one who had had the strength of will to truly unite Konoha and maintain the peace, and no matter how much his son took after him that wasn't going to change. It was too late. It was only a matter of time until war came and he would protect his clan with everything he had. Even if it meant becoming a traitor.

In true terse Uchiha fashion, he penned a short response to the Sandaime's long letter, saying that he agreed to the plan and would be waiting for the complaints to pile up. Rolling it up, he sealed it for the Hokage's eyes only and gave it to the monkey who quickly scampered through the window he held open for it. And with that he took the original scroll and prepared himself to deal with his wife. She had loved Uzumaki Kushina as a sister and was going to be furious with him for keeping Naruto's survival a secret. Couple that with the fact that Naruto had been told about his parents and his burden at a young age and she'd be lecturing him in that quiet, tightly controlled way of hers all night.

He wasn't looking forward to her reaction when she learned he had agreed to use Naruto's unpopularity (to put it mildly) to help the clan's image, either. And putting it off until the morning would only make things worse. His wife was a gentle woman usually, but when she was angry she became unnaturally calm in the 'I'm not exactly sure why I haven't killed you in your sleep yet' way, and it was terrifying.

The last time was when Itachi was sent into the battlefield not long after the Kyuubi attack. Kumo had taken advantage of the tragedy to once again invade Konoha and though the fighting had been short in comparison to the other wars, it was utterly brutal. And Itachi had been sent into that hell. Mikoto didn't sleep with him again until the war was over and kept making him eat the burnt food she made him. Not to mention she was in a foul mood from giving birth recently. He'd hardly slept for a month, cause she kept leaking killer intent in her sleep. He sighed as he opened the door to their bedroom; maybe at least this time she wouldn't stop sleeping with him.


	2. Training is Tedious

Ugh. This was the chapter that would not end, but finally. Gonna be busy, might be a week of two before update. Anyway, hope you guys like it.

Disclaimed.

The sun was just rising over the village when another Konoha resident found himself being dragged from his sleep by tapping on his window. Naruto opened sleep-blurred eyes to see an ANBU with a boar mask waiting patiently on the ledge outside his window. Grumbling, Naruto pulled himself from his bed and slid his window open.

Instead of looking at the ANBU though, his eyes first focused on his dad's face on the Hokage monument. Fortunately he had a great view of the monument from his window. As he looked at the ANBU questioningly, the man thrust the scroll into his hand with deliberate patience and disappeared without a word. It was a beautiful, sunny day, and it seemed ANBU-san didn't want to waste it with him.

"Well, good morning to you, too." the boy muttered indignantly. He examined the scroll, recognizing the Hokage's seal, before breaking it and reading the scroll's contents. Finally. His pranking was now officially officially sanctioned by the Hokage.

* * *

Naruto walked down the main street of Konoha with purpose. True, everyone was glaring at him, but with any luck they'd be blinded by his orange jumpsuit. No, Naruto had already decided to ignore them. He had much more important things to worry about. So he walked along obliviously, clever mind whirling with a mischievous grin tugging at his lips.

Finally he arrived at his destination, Higurashi Ninja Supplies. He should probably go to the library first, but was too excited to wait any longer. This place offered all the pranking supplies he could ever dream of and if he failed to get something important, he could always come back later.

He entered the shop, accompanied by the sound of a bell ringing above his head. A simple but effective way to prevent theft in a ninja village. He looked back down to see a big burly man with dark hair and eyes coming out of the workshop behind the store and offered the man a friendly smile.

The man merely stared at him a moment with a slight frown before asking somewhat sceptically, "Something I can help you with, kid?"

Naruto nodded, pulling out a note and handing it to the man, "Sandaime-jiji told me to give this to you."

The man raised an eyebrow at his informal speech but didn't comment. After reading the scroll the man appraised Naruto for a moment with an unreadable expression and snorted, shaking his head. "I hope you know what you're getting your yourself into, kid. I'm Higurashi Aoi, it looks like we'll be seeing a lot of each other, so just call me Aoi."

"I'm Uzumaki Naruto. Thanks, Aoi-san." Naruto beamed.

"Yeah yeah, I'll be behind the counter, let me know if you have any questions." The man answered nonchalantly before walking off.

Naruto took a good look around for the first time. The store was huge, probably the biggest in Konoha although it was only operated by a few people. It was empty at this time of the morning, but Naruto preferred it that way. Less people to ask questions.

As he looked around he saw enough equipment to fully equip a dozen ninja teams at least and couldn't help drooling. He quickly grabbed a large rucksack and grabbed some of the things he thought he'd need. Three Kunai and Shuriken sets, ninja wire of various gauges, smoke bombs, itching powder, exploding tags, (although he couldn't use them yet) makibushi, flash tags, senbon, and a jug of sticky, clear syrup he found that would stick to anything it touched besides the container.

He also got netting to cover pits and camouflage traps, a small can each of green and brown paint to use on ninja wire to help it blend in, and bandages and thigh and hip pouches to hold his equipment. Last but not least he found a sheet that was painted to look like a fence. It probably wouldn't keep him from getting caught against the clan of infamous Sharingan wielders, but he had to make a token effort at escape to make it seem like he didn't want to be caught.

He thought about that for a second. The Sharingan would most likely see through his traps. The police force always kept their Sharingan activated, so that would make pranking them especially hard. He would have to hone his speed and misdirection skills. What they couldn't see they couldn't prepare for and they would probably not be as good at using their ears and noses as him.

He also suspected that if he could keep them occupied long enough they wouldn't be able to react to an attack at the last moment, even if they could see it coming. They were the police force, so he'd probably have the most success getting them in a crowd where they would have to worry about the civilians and couldn't react as fast.

He grinned as he dragged his gradually overflowing rucksack around the floor. Once they realized what he was up to he would have to layer traps or even use traps as distractions in order to succeed. That's why he would get some buckets of paint and balloons later to either distract from the real traps or, later on, catch them while they dealt with the 'real' traps. He'd dreamed all night about ways to go about this and soon he would put his brainstorming to use.

Hmm, the Uchiha probably already blamed him for their plight and after this they would probably hate him even more. Hopefully they had the discipline to follow orders and not try to kill him. He grimaced at the thought, but even if they did Naruto trusted his ANBU guard to step in if things got out of hand.

After getting everything for his pranks, he set his bag down near the counter and went to the section with training supplies. He grabbed a few basic jutsu scrolls, thinking they'd come in handy once he unlocked his chakra. Henge, bunshin, kawarimi, and a useful looking rope escape jutsu. There were also scrolls labeled Basic Chakra Control Exercises, Basic Taijutsu and Elementary Stealth Jutsu. He could probably find all that at the library, but wanted portable copies to take with him when he trained.

He glanced around a moment more before finding what he was looking for. Training weight of various sizes and weights. He thought about the five pound weights, but realized that would probably count as 'going overboard.' Luckily there were small two pound weights for the wrists and ankles and hedecided he'd start with those.

He carried everything back to the counter and struggled to get everything on top of it. Even with the stool he'd been using to reach everything it was a lot more difficult to put things up than take them down.

Aoi chuckled after watching him struggle a bit and walked around the counter to lift up his bag with one large hand. "If you can't do something yourself, you should ask for help, kid."

Naruto blinked at the man owlishly for a moment before grinning widely, "I understand, Aoi-san!"

Aoi smiled a little and proceeded to ring up everything before packing it all away for him in his new backpack. "You sure you're gonna be able to carry all this, kid?"

Naruto smiled and pulled the bag off the counter only to drop it and fall off his stool after it. He stood up slowly and rubbed his aching backside while grinning sheepishly, "It's part of my training, Aoi-san."

The man merely nodded at that and wished him luck before going back to his work. Naruto tried to pick up his rucksack and put it on his back, but it was too heavy. Not one to give up easily, he crouched, pulling on the backpack's straps and struggling to stand. It weighed nearly as much as him, but he was able to barely able to stand by grabbing onto the counter. He wobbled forward and gradually made it out of the store, holding onto the door for balance. By the time he made it to the end of the block, he was sweating, although he'd managed to get a bit used to the extra weight.

* * *

By the time he got back to his apartment, he was drenched in sweat from the climb up the stairs and panting heavily. He fell down outside his door, tiredly pulling off his bag before opening the door and dragging his purchases inside his apartment. It was surprisingly clean, mostly because he had just moved in a couple weeks ago, but the kitchen had several empty containers of ramen and an empty carton of milk on the table. The sink was full of dishes and he knew the floor of his room was covered in dirty clothes. Naruto sighed, his mom wouldn't be pleased if she were here.

Surprisingly, this thought made him smile a bit. He dragged his rucksack to the empty closet next to the bathroom and arrayed his supplies on the lower shelves. He had more room here than in his bedroom. He held back only the rucksack itself as well as one of the pouches, the training weights, the taijutsu scroll and one set of kunai and shuriken.

Naruto quickly put on the training weights, put some of the kunai and shuriken in the pouch before putting the rest away in the closet. He put the scroll and the pouch in his bag and put it aside. After that he wiped the sweat off his forehead and decided to clean up. It didn't take long; he'd do his laundry tonight.

He grabbed his rucksack and left his apartment for Ichiraku. Naruto had had Ichiraku for dinner the night before, but he was in a good mood and would need the energy for studying and training later on.

* * *

Teuchi and Ayame had been thrilled to see him again so soon and he had ordered a simple miso ramen to tide himself over. He would have loved to eat more, but he didn't want to make himself sick later. The two of them were always nice to him and if he ever got tired of the ramen (heaven forbid) he wouldn't get tired of the company.

He looked around the library for a few minutes for the head librarian Yura-san and finally decided to ask for help, turning around only to find himself staring at someone's pants. He looked up to find himself looking at the most stern looking woman he'd ever come across. Her brown eyes bore into his own from behind thick-rimmed glasses, her brown hair was streaked with gray and her mouth was set in a perpetual frown. To his surprise she was wearing a brown long-sleeved top and black slacks, and her appearance was altogether unassuming and drab until you looked in her eyes.

Naruto felt his own eyes widen and took a step back; this woman was clearly a former ninja.

The woman cocked an eyebrow at him and asked coldly, "And what are you doing in my library that would require a rucksack, young man?"

"U-umm, nothing, I'm just looking for Yura-san." He stuttered.

The woman's harsh look relaxed for a moment before she informed him, "I am Yura. Why were you looking for me?"

Naruto was still nervous considering the woman was watching him like a hawk, so he hastened to take the note out and give it to her, "Hokage-sama told me to give this to you." he said quickly, thinking this woman probably wouldn't take it well if he spoke of the Sandaime casually in front of her. She might just box his ears from the look of her.

Yura scanned the contents of the scroll quickly and then tucked it into a pocket afterwords. She made no comment, just beckoned him to follow her before walking off quickly. Naruto practically had to run to keep up and tried to move quietly to keep from disturbing other people. He didn't think she'd appreciate that either.

They went up a flight of stairs and arrived at a door. She pulled out a card and pressed it to a chakra sensitive device. There as a whir and click and the door unlocked. Yura pulled it open and they walked inside.

The room was large, full of books and scrolls and was slightly dusty with no windows. There were desks and chairs, but other than that it looked like no more than a well-organized storeroom. There was another staircase that led to a similar door and another door at the other side of the room.

"This is the room where all the academy level materials are kept. Those catalogs will help you find what you're looking for. You do not have permission to access areas beyond this room. If you find something you want to check out, bring it to me. I will have an access card made for you shortly. Remember to clean up after you're done. If you have any questions you may ask me, but I will warn you that I do not appreciate people who waste my time, so if the answer can be found easily you'll have to figure it out yourself. Any questions?" Yura said all this without taking her stern eyes off his for a moment and he had to suppress a flinch.

He shook his head no and a moment later he was alone. Well, at least she was efficient, if scary. He had no doubt that she would make a strict but effective teacher and since he wanted to spend as little time studying as possible, he supposed he ought to be thankful.

Naruto shrugged off his bag and walked over to the nearest catalog. He grabbed a stool and stepped onto it to examine the book. He opened to the first page and saw a glossary with contents by topic. A note at the bottom of the page mentioned that some books appeared in more than one section.

Naruto turned to the section on chakra and found a subsection called chakra basics. The first book listed there was a book called An Introduction to Chakra: Unlocking, Molding, and Focusing. Writing down the number listed next to the title on one of the bits of scrap paper left for that purpose, Naruto looked around till he found a large bookcase that had 100-200 engraved on a plaque. He looked around that section until he found the book he wanted and took it to a seat to read.

About an hour later Naruto had realized that unlocking chakra was easier said than done. Even though everyone had chakra, it takes time and focus to be able to sense your own. This can only be accomplished by a strict meditation regimen. And even then, the less chakra a person has the harder it is to sense. In fact the majority of people are apparently born with too little chakra to be able to sense their own. That's why there are few civilians that become ninja.

The book claimed that according to legend, the Rikudo Sennen was born with the first doujutsu and strong chakra and so was able to discover the uses of chakra where even those with strong potential to use chakra hadn't been able to before. Most ninja from clans today were descended from the sennen, but there were still occasionally people who weren't that were born with enough chakra potential to become ninja.

It seemed Naruto would have to meditate a great deal to detect his chakra and then practice moving it in his coils to mold it. Molding would require combining energy from his mind and energy from his body in equal proportions. And once he managed to do that he would have to focus it either to a part of his body or using handseals.

He went back to the catalog and looked for a basic book on physical conditioning and one on non-chakra reliant stealth techniques. Once he got these to read later along with the book on chakra, he went back to the librarian and presented the books to her. Without a word she scanned the identifying seal on each book and handed them to him with a card on top.

She warned him in no uncertain terms that the card and books were library property and contained information that wasn't released to the general public and if anything happened to them he'd have to answer to her personally. Naruto left more than a little traumatized after that, but with a fervent desire to protect the precious items in his possession.

He wondered idly if Yura-san was a genjutsu specialist or if she was just that scary. The book on chakra contained a list with summaries of the different types and forms of chakra and their various uses and it claimed in a note that genjutsu specialists were considered some of the scariest ninja. For a beginner book it was a fairly comprehensive introduction.

He wondered if it was standard reading material at the academy or a reference book. He admitted it gave him a sense of satisfaction to think he would know things his classmates didn't, but then he remembered what Jiji said about children from ninja clans getting special training and tutoring and scowled. If he wanted to make up for that advantage he'd have to work hard.

To that end he ran to one of the parks nearby and sat at a bench in front of a medium sized pond. It was a fairly secluded area surrounded by trees and he wouldn't have to worry about people bothering him here. He pulled out the book on physical conditioning and began reading. The Taijutsu scroll first said that a Taijutsu user needs more than technique and this book started the same.

Taijutsu is only as effective as the physical capabilities and endurance of the user allow it to be. There are many different styles of Taijutsu, all with different uses, strengths and weaknesses. Different styles put a varying emphasis on the importance of several areas including offense, defense, blocking, dodging, feinting, redirection, misdirection, agility, strength, speed, weapons use, and so-called 'soft' and 'hard' attacks. If you can think of a way to fight without directly using your chakra, there's a Taijutsu style that incorporates it.

Considering that, there is an equally large number of ways to condition your body for the use of Taijutsu. What extent one focuses on agility, speed, or strength depends on the person and the Taijutsu style they prefer. If one hasn't chosen a style then a common style that uses a balanced combination of basic grappling techniques, throws, feints, blocks, basic attacks and dodging is recommended. That way when a specialized Taijutsu is chosen the user will have some familiarity with the basics associated with that style.

Naruto sweat-dropped. The book on chakra was less complicated than this. The book went on to describe different training regimens that worked well with particular Taijutsu styles as well as a general regimen for any Taijutsu style.

Naruto's head was buzzing, should he pick a style now? But he had no-one to teach him, best keep it simple and work on the basics. The Taijutsu scroll had diagrams for a basic stance and a few basic blocks, attacks, and throws as well as a couple grappling techniques. There were almost no details except for a tip here and there. He'd just have to give it a try and ask for advice later.

Although the chance of him getting the grappling techniques and throws right without someone to practice with was low. Naruto sighed. He'd learn it anyway. He'd probably fail to use it right with the Uchiha, but if he could figure out what he was doing wrong that way, he had a chance of learning even without a sparring partner.

Naruto smiled at that and took a look at the general training regimen. It looked good, but he wanted to specialize in speed and agility. He'd need it to stand a chance against the Sharingan eyes of the Uchiha and from what JiJi said about the Kyuubi healing his body, it'd probably be easy to built muscle, but hard to build speed and agility. If he wanted balanced physical abilities, he'd have to start working on that now.

It looked like the best way to train endurance was running long distances with weights and obstacle courses were the best bet for agility. As for basic strength training, one-handed push-ups, pull-ups, upside down situps, weighted squats, punches, kicks and sprinting short distances seemed to be the best. Running was the best for speed, both at short and long distances. Since people slow when they get tired, both strength and endurance were necessary for speed.

Naruto thought about it a bit and decided that the Uchiha would probably give him a crash course in agility. So he would focus on speed and endurance with a bit of strength training. With that decided he put the book away and jogged around the pond a few times to warm up. He was a little tired to start with from the weights, but he still had plenty of energy left.

After he warmed up, he started sprinting back and forth across the field in front of the bench as fast as he could, trying to increase his speed. When he was so tired he could barely stand, he stopped and took a break. Then pushups, pullups, situps and some time spent kicking and punching a tree as hard as he could until his legs and arms felt like they would fall off and his entire body ached.

He took a longer break after that and then wearily got to his feet. He was still tired, but he seemed to regain his energy fairly fast. Wryly, he thought that the bastard fox in his stomach ought to be useful for something. He tiredly got to his feet and set off running at a fast jog aiming to completely exhaust his inhuman stamina.

* * *

An hour later a boy stumbled halfway through a field on the other side of Konoha before collapsing face forward into the grass. Uzumaki Naruto had alternately jogged and sprinted at his best pace around Konoha a few times before stumbling over his own feet and passing out.

After another hour the boy woke up and started plodding to Ichiraku, determined to feed his starving body before going home. The sun was starting to go down and he realized that he'd been working for almost twelve hours and he still had books to read. He sighed, knowing that it would eventually get easier.

* * *

Teuchi and Ayame were taken aback by the dirty blonde that came traipsing into their stand towards the end of the dinner rush. Most of the other customers quickly payed and left, but the pair paid them no mind. Their attention was entirely focused on Naruto who was shuffling along, looking at the ground.

He looked up for a moment and gave them a quiet greeting, which shocked the two even more. They exchanged worried looks. They'd never seen the boy like this before, not even during the Kyuubi Festival the year before. He was covered in sweat and had twigs in his hair. He didn't appear to be hurt, but...

Ayame was the first to regain herself, "Naruto-kun, are you alright? What happened to you?"

The boy looked up at them dazedly, "I'm fine Ayame-nee-chan. I was just training." He was interrupted by his stomach growling and a pained look crossed his face. "Umm, could I get a pork miso ramen with the works?"

Teuchi gave a curt nod and got to work, while Ayame stayed with the boy looking at him worriedly. "Why were you training so hard, Naruto-kun?"

Naruto gave the teenage girl a smile to reassure her, "I'm gonna be Hokage one day Ayame-nee-chan. A Hokage can't be a slacker."

Ayame breathed out a small sigh of relief hearing him talk like that. Then she adopted a lecturing stance, "Still, you need to take care of yourself, Naruto-kun. You're body wont hold up like that."

The boy gave her an oddly blank look for a second before smiling softly, "Thanks, Ayame-nee-chan. I'll be careful, I promise."

Ayame gave a mollified nod, wondering what that look had been about. She shook it off, though, and went to help her father.

Naruto, on the other hand, was thinking that Ayame was nice to be concerned about him even though she knew about the Kyuubi. He wanted to tell them that he knew, but Jiji had warned him against letting people know that he was aware in case the council found out. Naruto knew they could be trusted, but didn't want to burden them any further, considering that their business was already suffering just by him being here. Instead, he smiled and relaxed, breathing in the smell of cooking ramen and trying not to drool. He already felt a little better than earlier, although he wasn't sure one bowl would be enough this time. No, definitely not.

* * *

After a shower, Naruto snuggled up in his bed with his books, too tired to do much else at this point. The stealth book was really interesting, all about masking your intent and how the better part of stealth and especially infiltration was planning what path you took to minimize the chance of discovery. Also, moving quickly and silently was a necessary skill for a ninja. Moving as fast as possible with as little noise as possible was a basic aspect of stealth training.

The book said that the epitome of stealth without chakra is to be able to sneak up and touch a prey animal like a rabbit or a deer without scaring them off. It wouldn't help you against people with chakra sensing capabilities, (most ninja, to an extent) but it would keep a ninja's instincts alone from alerting them, which could happen even if your chakra was completely suppressed. He'd have to go to the forest tomorrow and give it a try.

He figured he'd finished with the physical conditioning book, although it made him want to read up on Taijutsu styles sometime, but he hardly had the time now. The chakra book, however, he was just getting started with. It said that it usually took at least a month of meditation to detect chakra, if you had a reasonable amount. He had no intention of waiting that long, so he'd be dedicating his evenings to meditation until he could sense his chakra.

Before he started, he thought about what he'd do tomorrow. He needed to shop for some food. The physical conditioning book had a chapter on nutrition that was enlightening and he couldn't just keep eating at Ichiraku even though he wanted to. Too expensive. He'd need meat, milk and even vegetables. Ugh. But if his mom had taken the time to tell him to not be a picky eater before she died he figured he could live with it. Maybe he could figure out how to make ramen from a book at the library. If he added meat and vegetables, it might not be so bad...

He'd also needed to get paint and balloons for his pranks. Thank goodness there was a general store owner that sold to him. He didn't even inflate the price. He only insisted Naruto come in when the store was empty so people wouldn't see him. The old man only cared about money and figured if he sold to Naruto at a fair price, he'd have a completely loyal customer. Which was true. He was a mean old bastard, but at least he was indiscriminate in his greed. He'd probably have sold to the Kyuubi himself as long as it didn't hurt his business.

He was seriously impatient to start pranking though, but he knew he had to be careful. He was basically declaring war on the Uchiha, and that was not something to do lightly. So after he got his shopping done, he'd turn in the book on physical conditioning and get one on kunai and shuriken throwing, another on trap making and a third on reconnaissance, since he would need to get information about the Police HQ and the patrol routes without getting caught spying.

He'd take care of errands in the morning, practice his skills and train his physical abilities in the morning and afternoon and then work on his chakra and read at night. With a schedule of sorts worked out, Naruto settled down to meditate, focusing on his breathing and pulse like the book instructed. If he kept it up long enough and focused hard enough, he should be able to sense that there was more than blood and air moving in his body. Or that's what the book said. Naruto resigned himself to at least trying to be patient and emptied his mind.

* * *

Standing outside the Hokage's office a week later waiting to be let in, Naruto thought he must be a genius. He usually met with the Hokage every Sunday just for awhile to chat, but these scheduled meetings now took on a different purpose. He would be reporting his progress with his _mission_ and talking about things that would generally impact the future of Konoha greatly, such as the Kyuubi and the relationship between the village and the Uchiha clan. Even he could tell it was terribly important.

It was terribly exciting and yet terrifying at the same time. But not as exciting as the thought that he might be a genius like his father. No, he wasn't a brainiac like his dad apparently was. He'd learned a lot of big words talking to the Hokage so much, but he still hated studying and had a hard time memorizing things. And he doubted he had special chakra like his mom. He was making a lot of progress on his physical training and was even thinking about upping the amount of weight he used already, but that was because of Kyuubi, so it didn't count.

And while he was doing decently well with the stealth training, kunai and shuriken throwing, and trap-making he'd been working on the entire week, it wasn't anything to write home about. He guessed he could be considered a genius just from the fact that he was training so hard at such a young age, but that was a matter of circumstance and determination, not talent.

No, the thing that marked him as a potential genius was the fact that last night he had unlocked his chakra. Although he couldn't even begin to mold it yet, he could feel it coursing underneath his skin and it felt great. He had a lot of it, the book had said that when people first started sensing their chakra, it was usually very faint, even if they had a large chakra potential.

But he could feel his chakra pulsing even stronger than his own heartbeat, which meant his chakra potential must be huge, probably partially because of Kyuubi and partially because of his mom. That wasn't the impressive part, though. It was that he'd unlocked it so soon. The book had said that even those with large chakra reserves take a good month at least to unlock their chakra.

That's because the mind has to connect to the body in a new way, literally having to learn to use a new sense. The adjustment process is gradual, so students are warned that it will take a long time, pretty much no matter what. But in his case it only took a week and he was sure that it had very little if anything to do with the Kyuubi. No, this was a talent all his own and he was proud of it. It probably meant that his mind had a strong connection with his body or something. Which was awesome.

Naruto jerked out of his musings when the door to the Hokage's office opened. The Hokage motioned him in before returning to his seat. Naruto looked around before running to stand in front of his Jiji's desk.

"Hey, Jiji! How's it goin?" The child asked enthusiastically.

The Hokage chuckled before answering, "I'm doing good, Naruto. How are you?"

"Great! Thanks for introducing me to Aoi-san and Yura-san. Yura-san's a little scary, but really helpful. And Aoi-san is really nice." The boy chattered cheerfully.

The Hokage smiled fondly at the boy. "And how is your training going, Naruto?"

Naruto started bouncing up and down on his heels a little in excitement. "It's really fun. I've been working on unlocking my chakra, kunai and shuriken throwing, stealth and taijutsu. I can't wait to put it all to use, but I think it'll be a month of two till I'm ready to start pranking." The boy finished a little sadly.

He pouted for a second before a mischievous grin overtook his face. "But a good prank needs planning. It'll be worth it to see the looks on their faces."

The Hokage chuckled, "Just be careful, alright?" At Naruto's nod he continued, "Naruto, I summoned you here to meet Kakashi, he's the student of your father's I mentioned earlier. He's also on your ANBU detail, and he said he'll let you know when he's on duty, so you can talk a bit when you're alone. Kakashi, you can come in now."

Naruto looked at the door, but to his surprise he heard a window to his right open. He turned to see a guy around twenty crouched on the windowsill. He had poofy gray hair and a hitai covering his left eye. Kakashi's other eye gave a close-eyed...smile? Weird. He seemed pretty good at expressing himself considering the rest of his face was covered by a mask. The man raised his left hand lazily and waved a bit. "Yo."

Naruto blinked and gaped for a minute before grinning. "Jiji said you're my dad's student and kind of like his adopted son. Does that make us brothers?" The boy tilted his head cutely, looking surprisingly innocent and inquisitive.

The man blinked slowly and looked thoughtful for a moment, "I guess, in a way, it does."

"Cool!" The boy thought for a second before asking, "Kakashi-nii, can you help me with my taijutsu, I don't have anyone to teach me and it's the only thing I can't learn myself." Naruto had a disgruntled pout on his face and Kakashi couldn't help chuckling a little. "Maybe I can give you some tips if I'm on duty while you're training."

"Really! That'd be awesome!" The boy looked like he'd explode with excitement and Kakashi quickly added, "But I'm surprised you don't want me to teach you jutsu."

The boy looked pensive before saying, "I can learn jutsu from scrolls, but I can't mold chakra yet."

The Hokage's eyebrows rose up, causing his aged forehead to form deep creases. "You unlocked your chakra already?"

Kakashi's lone gray eyebrow rose as well. Naruto grinned a little sheepishly and scratched the back of his head, "Yah, I worked on it all week. I finally got it last night."

Kakashi and the Hokage exchanged glances. "I see," Sarutobi began, "That's quite impressive." Sarutobi paused for a moment before picking up a scroll and adding, "This is your curriculum for this year. Make sure to keep up with your studies."

Naruto nodded and grimaced, "I will, Jiji."

The Hokage chuckled again before looking a bit worried, "What about what we talked about last time? We can talk about it if you want."

Naruto looked a bit sadly at the Hokage's concerned expression before smiling a bit, "I'm ok, Jiji. I'm just glad I was able to find out about them. And I don't care if those idiots think I'm a demon, I'll prove them all wrong! So keep that seat warm for me, Jiji."

Sarutobi smiled fondly at him before turning to Kakashi, "I'm putting you on Naruto's detail tonight, so you can get to know each other a bit. The shift starts at 6, don't be late."

Kakashi merely chuckled a bit before looking at Naruto, "See ya later, squirt."

Before Naruto could say anything, Kakashi disappeared out the window silently.

Naruto turned to Sandaime with an annoyed expression, "Is he always like that?"

Sarutobi laughed good-naturedly, "Yes. Always...hmm." Sandaime looked at his mounting pile of paperwork and gave an annoyed sigh, "Well, I know we usually have ramen on Sunday, but since I have so much work and you're meeting Kakashi tonight, what do you say to holding off 'till tomorrow?"

"Ok, Jiji, I'll see you tomorrow, then. And thanks again." Naruto didn't wait for a response before charging out of the room.

Sarutobi smiled sadly and said under his breath, "Thank you, Naruto."

Kakashi chose that moment to spring back into the room. "Hokage-sama, what do you think about him unlocking his chakra so soon?"

The Hokage smirked, "Straight to the point, eh Kakashi? It's hard to say, I've never heard of someone getting it down in less than three weeks. But I don't think it has anything to do with Kyuubi, if that's what you're asking. It's probably partially due to his determination and partially due to his mother. The Uzumaki clan was always known for their affinity with their chakra, afterall and Kushina had the strongest chakra seen in that clan in awhile."

Kakashi nodded, "That makes sense. Well, I'll help him as much as I can, Hokage-sama."

Sandaime smiled, "Thank you Kakashi. I think you two will be able to help each other a great deal."

Kakashi looked at the cunning old Hokage before nodding slightly and disappearing in a swirl of leaves.

Sarutobi stared at the leafy mess on the floor in annoyance as his eyebrow twitched, "That's coming out of his pay."

The old kage shook his head at his subordinate's attitude and looked at his paperwork. "Looks like another late night." He sighed before getting to work.


End file.
